Sunday was a car-free day in Cochabamba. And except for ambulances and government and military vehicles, I mean it was absolutely car-free. From 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., there were no motor vehicles on the roads in downtown at all, only pedestrians and bicycles. And this decree was enforced by law. How refreshing! Sunday was the first day I felt totally safe walking at will around here.
How refreshing … and how enlightened, too. This is El Día del Peatón (Day of the Pedestrian), and it happens a few times during the year, on the first Sunday of the month; according to Profesora Viviana, also the first Sunday of September and December. It is an ecological celebration, meant not only to liberate people from their dependence on the combustion engine and move their bodies by their own power, but also to teach them care for creation. A day when the lungs of the city can be cleared.
Given the volume of pedestrians and cyclists, the volume of waste would be high. Accordingly, there was a legion of employees and volunteers to help residents separate trash and recycling properly. This was a necessity because of the festival atmosphere surrounding the city streets once again. Do car-free days in U.S. cities have as many bands on stage, DJs and dancers, clowns and troubadours, fortune tellers, carousels, trampolines, inflatable pools, exhibits, and street hawkers and vendors as Cochabamba? I think not! Bolivians put all their heart, mind, soul, and strength into putting on a party. And when they set their mind on something, they do it together. At the convent, Fray Bladimir was giving three bicycles a tune-up so some of the brothers could go out in the afternoon and enjoy the day. Celebration as solidarity: I can dig it.
Happily, on Sunday morning I got to walk with the girls from Nuestra Casa around the streets and plazas of the city center, so quickly transformed, again, into a carnival. The brothers are surprised by my surprise at the festivity. They have not been to the United States, where the car culture reigns supreme. Imagine shutting down the downtown of a city the size of Boston to all motor vehicles all day long! That’s what they did, and I salute them for it.
In other news: Fray Bladimir invited me to an all-day conference for youth, organized by the Archdiocese of Cochabamba. It is taking place on Saturday in the city of Quillacollo, located about 10 miles west of Cochabamba. Youth and young adult ministry is not something to which I feel a special calling, though all disciples are called to live the Gospel and be a witness to people of all ages. But two things have hooked me in spite of my lack of experience in youth and young adult ministry and my obvious lack of Spanish and cultural literacy for contextual ministry. First, Fray Bladimir promises that I will get to meet numerous other Franciscans from the First Order: Franciscans, Conventual Franciscans, and possibly my fellow Capuchins (a number of them live in Santa Cruz, far to the east of Cochabamba). If nothing else, I can represent the Capuchins at this conference. Second, Pope Francis has just published Christus Vivit, his apostolic exhortation to young people, written in response to the Synod of Bishops that met in October 2018 to reflect on young people, faith, and vocational discernment. We have been reading the document during morning prayer. So I suppose the time is right to engage, to think and pray with the church about youth and young adults, and to respond.
In the week to come I will keep in mind the brothers in my home province who are promoting vocations to our form of consecrated life; the young men who attended our vocation discernment weekend on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in Boston; and those young men in particular who have applied to join our fraternity. I believe we will know later this month, if not this week, how many postulants we will receive this summer.
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